Naseem Hamed (The Prince )
Introduction
Naseem Hamed is known for changing the boxing history. His parents were Yemini and as a young boy he was called Naseem Salom Ali Hamed. He is rated as the 6th pound-for-pound best British boxer by BoxRec. He has won titles of championship like WBO, IBF, WBC, Lineal featherweight Champion and European Bantamweight Championship. He left the sport prematurely and has started a sport management company with Mr. Clive Richardson.
Early life
Naseem Hamed was born on 12 February 1974 at. Sheffield, Yorkshire in United Kingdom. He learnt boxing when he was 7 years. His parents were Yemini who had moved to UK. This British boxer was given the title ‘Prince’ although he has no noble ancestors or is not from king family.
Early career
Hamed started his boxing career in 199. From the very beginning he is known for taking risks and knocking down his opponents in the opening round itself. At flyweight, he fights with Ricky Beard and win in the second round. He not only defeated his enemy with physical punches but also tired him with mental stress. At the age of twenty, he won the European bantamweight title. He added this title to his CV. His popularity grew because of his boxing techniques and ideas. His unorthodox style collected many fans especially because he employing spectacular entrances in the ring likes lift, palanquin, wearing Halloween mask, somersault, etc.
His fights in the year 1992 are following
April. 14, 1992 with Ricky Beard at Mansfield, England
April 25, 1992 with Shaun Norman at Manchester, England
May 23, 1992 with Andrew Bloomer at Birmingham, England
July 14, 1992 with Miguel Matthews at Mayfield, England
October, 1992 with Des Gargano at Sunderland, England
November, 12, 1992 with Pete Buckley at Liverpool, England
His tactic was such and would distract his opponent that at times they would barely hit him and they would lose concentration and he would send them to the canvas with one big punch. He also fought many fights in 1993 and 1994 before becoming world champion. (Eisele, 2014)
World Champion
In 1995, he became number one WBO featherweight champion. His first fight in 1995 was against Armando Castro and was played in Glasgow on January 21 where he knocked him down in fourth round. Next game was played against Sergio Liendo on forth March in Livingston where he pushed his opponent in second round only. His next game was against Enrique Angeles on May sixth in Shepton Mallet, England which lasted for only two rounds and Hamed sent him to the canvas. On July 1st, game was against Juan Polo-Perez at Kensington, England where he sent him to the floor in the second round. Thus he became the title owner of WBO Featherweight Championship, though he never fought in this weight.
The Prince became the King when he fought with Steve Robinson on 30 September in Cardiff. The crowd was of 16,000 where all were favoring Robinson but he was defeated in the fifth and eighth round. . This game was played in front of Robinson’s home and he had his fans shouting. Rain was pouring on the fighters and the ring on that day but the prince boxer became the king of boxing on that day.
In 1996 on March 16, he fights against Said Lawal who was Nigerian which just ended in very fast. Next game was on June eight against Daniel Alicea, played at Newcastle, England where he was for the first time knocked down in his career but he won with two knockdowns and was carried on the ring on a grand throne. His next was on August 31 against Manual Medina, in Dublin which continued for 11 rounds. His next opponent was Remigio Molina, who was again knocked with two rounds.
In 1997, he defeated IBF champion Tom Johnson at London Arena. Then he fought with European champion Billy Hardy whom he knocked just in round one. His next win was against Juan Gerardo Carbrera. On October 11, in 1997 he won against Jose Badillo which took place in his hometown Sheffield where he gave his best performance of his career. His U.S. debut was against Kevin Kelley which was fought in New York. Kevin was former owner of the WBC title. It was a tough entertaining fight but Hamed managed to knock him down in the fourth round and this was his first fight on HBO.
In 1998, he defeated 3 time WBA title holder 'Wilfredo Vazquez' and bantamweight title holder 'Wayne McCullough'. He fought against Paul Ingle of Scarborough on in year 1999 where he was down once made fans of Paul happy but finally Hamed defeated him. At that time his trainer was 'Oscar Suarez'. He also fought with WBC Champion 'Cesar Soto' under the same trainer. It was his second fight under him. The Mexican people thought Soto would give Hamed tough fight. This fight was played in United States of America in year 1999 and this fight was bit dirty. He defeated this Soto but this fight was absolutely rubbish played by Soto. It continued for 12 round and Prince was declared the winner and got WBC title along with WBO title.
His most impressive and biggest victory was knocking down Vuyani Bungu of South Africa on March 2000 at Olympia, in London. He retained his WBO title for the 15th time when he played against Augie Sanchez on August 2000 at Foxwoods Resort, Mashantucket in Connecticut. Here he broke his arm and spent six months out of gym and gained 35 pounds weight. (SELASA, 2008)
Last Fight and Dethronement
However in 2001, Hamed was defeated by Marco Antonio Barrera and lost his lineal championship. This was played in Las Vegas and he did try to lose weight but only made to lose 2 pounds only. His tutor was very worried. When he was knocked down in the first round, he could not hit Barrera anymore. In his interview with Sporting heroes Hamed said that his defeat was due to inactivity and excessive weight gain. On 18th May 2002, Hamed returned to the ring to fight against European champion Manuel Calvo. This match was played at London Arena in London. Although, he did promise that he would fight again but this was his last boxing match and he retired at the age of 28 which he said was due to his hand fractures and chronic hand problems.
Legacy
Hamed is said to have filled the void created by lower weight fighters like Hoya and Kostya. He became the new poster boy and his charismatic brilliance drew many fans. In spite of his many wins, critics find that he had many flaws in his fighting. He could have been the most exciting fighter and he had the ability to do so but he disliked training and long time away from his family. So he gave up at an early age. Boxing pundit of Britain Steve Bunce stated that he was the greatest Boxer of the present times. The Ring Magazine ranked him as the 11th greatest British boxer of all time and also ranked him as the 46th greatest puncher of all times. He is today considered as the most talented fighter and although he ended his career at an early age, he still is known for his great punches, styles, and performances. (SELASA, 2008)
Controversy outside the ring
Hamed was involved in a car collision where his £300,000 silver McLaren-Mercedes SLR met with an accident on 2nd May 2005. He was arrested and later released on bail and was charged at Sheffield Court. This was a three-car collision where Hamed’s car hit the second vehicle injuring the driver seriously. He was sentenced to jail for 15 months and was banned from driving for four years. Hamed was also previously convicted for speeding offences three times. However, he was released on September 2006 serving only four months in jail although he was convicted for 15 months. But his title of being the - Member of the Civil Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) was taken back due to this collision. (SELASA, 2008)
Conclusion
Prince Naseem Hamed started his boxing career in 1992 and ended in 2002. He has a record of 36 wins with only one loss. He has 31 knockouts in his career. He is remembered today by his fans for his colorful entrances, southpaw stance, and fashionable entries in the ring. His alterations and unorthodox and rough behavior drew lot of criticism. But despite all this he still rules the heart of boxing lovers and his tactics and style is still loved by all.
References
Eisele, A. (2014). Prince Naseem Hamed. Retrieved December 08, 2014, from About.com: http://boxing.about.com/od/records/a/hamed.htm
SELASA. (2008, October 07). NASEEM HAMED THE PRINCE. Retrieved December 08, 2014, from http://naseemhamed.in/
